Tories' sudden pro-LGBT move before the second TV debate

(Picture: Guardian)

A day before the second leaders' television debate, Conservative party leader David Cameron had made a sudden announcement that he would send Nick Herbert, the party's shadow environment secretary and "the most senior gay member" of his team, to Poland to persuade the party's highly conservative ally in the European parliament, the Polish Law and Justice party, to change their views on sexuality.

Cameron also said Herbert would attend a gay rights march in Warsaw in July. He reportedly said: "We would not join with parties that had unacceptable views. But we do recognise that, particularly in central and eastern Europe, there are parties that have still got some way to go on the journey of recognising full rights for gay people. We are helping them make that journey."

Considering the proximity of Cameron's announcement to the second television debate, it is thus not surprising that his move was widely seen as a last-minute resort to prevent himself from possible attacks by Gordon Brown and Nick Clegg on the Tories' alliance with right-wingers in the EU.

The message from Cameron was clear - the Tories are committed to transforming itself into a more moderate party, and is helping their extremist allies in the EU in doing so as well. But will the voters buy his story?

In a commentary this morning, Toby Helm of the Guardian wrote:
"Fascinating, first of all, because the announcement comes hours before tonight's TV debate on international affairs, in which the Tories' new alliance will be a major point of discussion.

"But fascinating also because last autumn, when journalists first began to point out that the likes of the Polish Law and Justice party (PiS) were homophobic (anti-gay views are central to its Catholic fundamentalist view of life) they were attacked by the Tory media machine for being part of a Labour-led smear operation. The stories were nonsense, they said, and Labour-inspired lies."

An Observer's news report earlier this month revealed that the Conservatives had in a 2007 internal report concluded that the PiS and other parties now in the new grouping in the European parliament did have homophobic and extremist tendencies. The internal report also warned the Tories about forming an alliance with such parties. Despite all this, the Tories decided to join the group anyway.

If what Cameron claimed last night - that his party was committed to help change their EU allies' homophobic views - was right, wouldn't it be easier to just make a decision in 2007 to not befriend the extremists in EU? After all, what is the reason of forging friendship with someone you already know might not be a suitable friend, and then suddenly deciding to take the pain of changing your friend's attitude and thinking?

It would not be difficult to comprehend if the LGBT community questioned Cameron's sincerity in tackling the issues on LGBT rights, for his party has somehow showed inconsistency in its stance towards the issue.

Whatever Cameron's intention was, dispatching Herbert to Poland may do little help in changing the LGBT's perception on the Tories' perception on LGBT.